Safety



(No Model.) 7

F. S. GUERBER.

SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAYS.

No. 365,001. Patented June 1, 1887.

INVENTEJF! N, PEYEH$ Photo-Lithographer. Washin ton, D. c,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK S. GUERBER, OF ALLENTO\VN, PENNSYLVANIA.

SAFETY APPLlANCE FOR RAlLWAYS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 365,001, dated June 14, 1887.

Application filed July 28,1886.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FREDERICK S. GUERBER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Allentown, in the county of Lehigh and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful In'iprovements in Safety Appliances for Railways; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a side elevation, partly broken away, of interlocking apparatus, signal-post, track-instrument, and railwaytrack. Fig. 2 is a plan view of interlocking apparatus and track-instrument, with signal-post in section. Fig. 3 is a vertical detail, and Fig. 4 a hori zontal section, partly in plan, ofinterloeking cylinders and lever. Fig. 5 is a plan, and Fig. 6 an end elevation, oftrack instrument. Fig. 7 is a detail view of a portion of the apparatus.

My invention has reference to interlocking switch and signal apparatus, and has for its object to provide means whereby when a track has been cleared for the passage of a train, the position of the parts whose 1n ovement has precededthe setlingoflhe signal eannotbe changed by the switch man or operator until a train has passed and effected an automatic unlocking.

My improvements consist in the pecuhar construction and combination ofparts, hereinafter fully described, whereby the aforesaid result is accomplished by mechanical means solely.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, A represents one rail of a main track and (Z a signalpost.

E represents an interlocking apparatus eontrolling the signal, to be on the post (Z, and a switch-lock. (Not shown in the drawings.) F F'are two cylinders of such apparatus, having rockers G G, in which rockers are levers H H, said levers having connections I I with the signal and switeh-lock, respectively, the lever H being that which effects the movements of the signal-connection and the lever H the one by which the switelrlock is moved. The connection I is connected at any suitable point with a slide, 7., which is fitted to move longitudinally in guides or ways It on a support, K, so that when lever II is thrown slide It will be moved longitudinally. There is provided.

Serial No. 209,306. (No model.)

a connection, I, attached to a slide, Z, which may be moved longitudinally between guides or ways Z on said support K.

M is a lever fulcru med at m 011 the support K, and pivotally connected at in with the connection I, the opposite end of said lever coming in front of the shoulder I62 of the slide 70, so that when the slide 7. is moved outwardly it will move the lever M on its fulcrum and push slide Z inwardly. The slide Z is formed with a projection, Z'", and a transverse lever, N, pivoted at a on the support K, is arranged so as to form a stop or dog for such projection when said lever N drops down in front ofthe shoulder Z thereof. Vhen the lever N is elevated out of engagement with the stop or projection Z, the slide Z may be moved so as to bring said projection under said lever, as shown in Fig. 5. The lever N can only be raised by a train in passing, its lifting being accomplished by the action of the first wheel of a train, car, or engine when passing, such wheel passing over its short arm a and raising its opposite end, which carries a weight, it, out of engagement with the shoulder Z". When lever N is so raised, another weighted lever, O, secured to the connection I and to a dog-bar, 1., moves the latter, and causes its dog p to rceede from an opening, f, in the cylinder F, thereby nnlocking said cylinder and permitting the lever H to be moved.-

The operation is as follows: The switch operator, having cleared the track and thereby put the signal to safety, in so doing moves the slides 7a and I, through the connections with the interlocking apparatus E, to the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5,whereupon the lever N drops into position against the shoulder Z, and dogs the slide Z, preventing its backward movement,or movement to the left, in Figs. 2 and 5. In moving the slide Z in the act of setting the signal to safety connection I, lever O, and dogbar P are also moved, causing dog 1) to enter opening f in cylinder F, thus locking the latter and preventing the movement of connection I. I may here mention that cylinder F may havea cam, f-,which, when said cylinder is oscillated in the proper direction, bears against bar I and aids the entrance of dog 12 to openingf in cylinder F. Now the operator, whose place is at the interlocking apparatus E, has virtually lost control of the movement of the connection I, as the leverN is at a point remote from him and: where he cannot move it, although he still retains control of the signal and its connections, and the switch-lock or other part whose movement depends upon said connection I will remain locked until a passing train moves the lever N, whereupon the signal-connection I, having been previously moved to bring slide to position shown in Fig. 5, the lever 0, acting upon the connection 1", moves the dog-bar 10 and unlocks the cylinder F. The action of lever 0 moves slide 1, so that its projection Z comes below the lever N, as shown in Fig. 5, affording a support to the latter and keeping its end a? out of further contact with the wheels of the passing train, so that only the first passing wheel strikes said lever.

Thesupport K, slides 70 and Z, and levers M N comprise the track-instrument, through the medium of which the automatic locking and unlocking described are effected. The special construction of this track-instrument, as well as of the unlocking apparatus, may be varied,

my improvements comprising the combination, with interlocking mechanism, of any equivalent meehanicallyoperating track instrument and connections which will operate to -produce the result describedin the manner specified.

I have spoken of the connection I as being a switch-lock connection; but it is obvious it may be a connection for a switch, gate, drawbridge, or other adjunct of a track or way.

It will be noted that the track-instrument does not operate by a direct pull on the interlockingapparatus or on the lever controlling the latter. On the contrary, the trip-lever N of the track-instrument isv merely tilted by a passing-train, so as to release slide Z, and then the weighted lever 0 effects the retirement of the dog 12 from cylinder F.' It said lever N were directly connected withsaid lever O and pulled on the latter, the sudden jerk of said levers, which would result from contact with the wheel of a passing train, would quickly shatter or rupture-such connection.

In lieu of a weight on lever N a spring may be employed, and as a substitute for the weighted lever O a spring on orrconnected to the connection I", and operating to produce the same effect as said weighted lever, may be used;

When the track has been cleared, the parts of the track-instrument occupy the positions shown in Fig. 5, the lever M and slide is being in the position shownin dotted lines, the slide 70 then engaging the lever M and preventing movement of slide Z. The signal operated by connection I is now at safety. As soon as a train, or the first-part of it, passes said signal, and before it reaches the track-instrument,

(the track-instrument and signal being usually a considerable distance apart, though shown close together in the drawings,) such signal should be moved to danger. This moves slide 70 lengthwise, so that it does not then dog the lever M, and slide Z and trip-lever N are free to operate as described when said leveris struck by the first wheel of a passing train or engine; and until said signal-connection is so moved to set the signal to danger the track-instrurestoration of the second lever to its original.

position alone, but requiring the coaction of a device that is operated by a passing train.

What I claim as my invention is as follows: 1. A. track-instrument for automatically locking and unlocking a switch-connection or other railway appliance, said instru menteomprising a support, K, with slides k and Z and levers M and N,\substantiall y as shown anddescribed.

2. The combination, with an interlocking apparatus, of atrack-instrument operative by a passing car or engine, and intermediate connections, I and 1, between saidinterlocking-apparatus and track-instrmnent, whereby, when the connection I is moved, the track-instrir 'ment locks the'interlocking apparatus, and

whereby, when said lever is tilted by a pass- 7 ing car or engine, the lever O or equivalent acts on said dog and withdrawsit from engagement with the cylinder, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand this 23d day of June, 1886.

FREDERICK S. GUERBER.

Witnesses:

WILLIAM HOWELL POWELL, R. DALE SPARHAWK. 

